Ad Nauseum – S/T

Ad Nauseum (founded in 2012) from Florida describes their music as “Fast Doom / Slow Grind”, which is indeed true, altho their music also has strong elements from Noise and Power Electronics in equal amounts. The term Sludge also comes of course to my mind. They are certainly not the first band of this nature (mixing Noise with ferocious Crust, Grindcore or Sludge), but they are a band that definitely stands out.

This cassette release features about 20mins of extreme Electronics and violent Metal and Punk oriented music so heavy and crushing, I would dare to say it is best experienced with headphones rather than crappy speakers.

The combination of mostly high-frequency noises and extremely low and crushing guitars and basses works really well, with all the different tracks clearly audible, yet merging into a single storm of malevolence, moving slowly but steadily. As the musical material is at times Doomy slow, and at other times Grinding fast, it must be said the fusion of noises and distorted guitars works better in the slower parts, altho the fast parts spice up the atmosphere nicely.

The riffs and beats are quite simple, but played professionally, both in the slow and fast parts. The vocals are also screamed with clear expertise and experience, equally violent to the overall soundscapes of the music. The Electronics are done with the same amount of abilities as the mixing of the material, a truly professional display of skills, lifting the music to great heights.

If extreme forms of Punk and Metal (in both extremely slow and fast paces), as well as the violent harshness of Noise are your thing, you must check this band out. Hopefully they will keep the quality of the mixing and production of these songs present in the future as well, as I would love to hear this same stuff as a bit longer release. However, 20mins of this sweetness is mos def worth your attention and money, trust me.